Wave Money: H&R Block deposits its $405M startup investment into small business banking

A year to the day after its acquisition by Kansas City tax giant H&R Block, Wave Financial is churning up change in the sea of small business banking. 

The Toronto,Canada-based fintech company announced Thursday the launch of Wave Money — a first-of-its-kind small business banking solution that eliminates banking fees, has built-in bookkeeping, and gives business owners instant access to cash. 

“Most entrepreneurs start a business to do what they love, not because they want to spend time on finances,” Kirk Simpson, co-founder and CEO of Wave, said in a release, noting few early-stage entrepreneurs carry the crucial accounting expertise needed to efficiently scale their companies. 

“Wave Money is made specifically for the entrepreneur who loves their work, not bookkeeping.”

Click here to access Wave Money for free. 

Jeff Jones, H&R Block

A natural outgrowth of its relationship with H&R Block, all features of Wave Money are designed to simplify tax filing, the company explained. 

The $405 million acquisition of Wave by H&R Block in June 2019, was a move by the Kansas City-grown company to collaborate with like-minded businesses, working to create transformative solutions, Jeff Jones, H&R Block CEO exclusively told Startland News last summer. 

“They’ve taken a really complicated topic — which is accounting, invoicing, payroll and payments — they’re so well known for just having a beautiful, simple user interface. … We saw that and then we saw their roadmap and just how many new things have introduced [in the last nine years],” Jones said at the time of the acquisition, noting the company’s commitment to backing more entrepreneurial efforts in the spirit of its own origin story. 

Click here to read more about Jones’ thoughts on the acquisition of Wave or here to read about H&R Block’s $3.5 million commitment to local entrepreneurship and community building.

Additional Wave Money perks include no account minimums or monthly fees — a boost for the average Wave customer who pays more than $425 in annual fees — mobile check deposit, and access to the largest free ATM network, automatic expense categorization, management of business income, a business bank account, debit card, and mobile app. 

Businesses based in the United States can pay vendors and contractors by email, and send and receive ACH transfers. 

All U.S. deposits up to $250,000 are insured by the FDIC, the company said. 

“Now more than ever, small businesses need all the help they can get. Many small business banks have fees, complicated record keeping, and can take days to give business owners access to their money,” Simpson said. 

“When the stakes are higher than ever, this is not acceptable. It’s time the small business community has a free banking and bookkeeping solution that empowers them to do what they do best — run their business.”